Original subtitles

JOHN-BOY: Katey Anne.

Katey Anne.

Must have been some nightmare.

- You okay, Walton? - Fine.

Is Katey Anne your girl?

Well, she must be pretty important. You kept calling out for her in your sleep.

I don't know any Katey Anne.

Do any of you remember a girl named Katey Anne?

If you can't remember your old girlfriends, don't expect us to.

So that name doesn't mean anything to you?

- Doesn't ring a bell. - Sounds like a mystery.

(SINGING) Carry me back to old Virginny

(BUOY TOLLING)

That's where the cotton

And the corn and taters grow

John-Boy, you all right?

JOHN-BOY: There were many homecomings in my life,

but the one I remember best

followed a long spell in the hospital during World War II.

A visit home would be the final step in my recovery,

and I looked forward to the comfort of those familiar surroundings.

I never dreamed that I would bring the war with me,

and that it would haunt me even on Walton's Mountain.

Katey Anne.

Katey Anne.

Katey Anne.

Must have been some nightmare.

- You okay, Walton? - Fine.

Is Katey Anne your girl?

Well, she must be pretty important. You kept calling out for her in your sleep.

I don't know any Katey Anne.

Well, now then, just a smidgen to the right.

- No, the left. That's my right. - We got it, Rose.

- Jeffrey! - I'm sorry.

Young man, you ought to be helping instead of getting in the way.

Now, go to the attic

and check Jason and Jim-Bob and see if they need a hand.

I already did. They told me to check with you.

Mary Ellen, how come you're letting John-Boy have your room?

Because it was his room first,

and we want him to find it just the way he left it.

It'll be fun being roommates. I get lonely out there without Ben.

We can bore each other silly with baby stories.

The baby, I left her up in the girls' room. Jeffrey, you help Mary Ellen.

JEFFREY: Do I have to?

MARY ELLEN: You think you can handle this?

- It's kind of heavy. - I'll try.

MARY ELLEN: Okay. Here we go.

ROSE: Okay, let's see if I can give you a hand.

MARY ELLEN: Easy, easy.

John-Boy's old typewriter is in this trunk somewhere.

- Well, maybe he won't want it anymore. - No, he'll want it.

The war changes people.

There was this soldier in this awful battle, and when he came home,

he had this limp and this sad, faraway look in his eyes.

And he wouldn't talk about the war, not ever.

Until he met this beautiful blind girl

and realized that other people had handicaps, too.

- You saw the movie. - And I cried buckets.

Here's the typewriter. Put the lid down.

It's jammed.

- Put everything back in the trunk. - Okay.

We gotta clear out two drawers for John-Boy.

That should be enough.

ELIZABETH: Oh, no, you don't.

MARY ELLEN: It's not going up there.

JIM-BOB: Gangway.

Here.

- Thanks, Erin. - Thanks.

Okay, we're ready for John-Boy now.

- No. Get off. - No.

Elizabeth, John-Boy won't recognize the place if it's too neat.

JASON: You're right.

ERIN: Help!

Hello.

Well, hello, ladies.

Have you heard the good news? John-Boy is coming home today.

Good news, Mr. Godsey. Good news, isn't it, Sister?

I always knew one day he'd return.

I'm afraid he's only home for furlough. He'll be here just a few days.

Sister, we must welcome John-Boy home.

- We must do something special. - An entertainment of some sort.

It's been so long since we had a really grand affair.

An autograph party.

Everyone could bring their copy of G.I. Journal

and John-Boy could sign it for them.

That's a lovely idea.

Sister, we should go home immediately and start making plans.

Wasn't there something you were gonna do here in the store?

Yes. What was it, Sister?

The package. We came to mail the package.

To Franklin Delano Roosevelt. The President, don't you know.

We thought he might enjoy some of Papa's Recipe.

So relaxing.

Ladies, it's against the law. You can't ship Recipe through the mail.

Well, then we will simply have to deliver it in person.

Well, I'll see if you have any mail.

We were expecting a reply from Mr. Churchill.

Well, let's see here then.

No. Nothing from Mr. Churchill,

but here's something for Mr. Godsey.

Oh, my, doesn't this look official.

It certainly does. I wonder what it is.

"Greetings from the President of the United States.

"Having submitted yourself to a local board composed of your neighbors

"for the purpose of determining your availability for training and service

"in the Armed Forces of the United States, you are hereby notified

"that you have been selected to report for physical examination

"by an examining board of the Armed Forces.

"Upon final determination of your fitness for military service,

"you will receive an order to report for induction."

Corabeth, they're calling me up.

Whatever will we do without you?

Well, I cannot believe that the war is going so badly

that Uncle Sam would point to Ike Godsey.

Come on, Corabeth, there's a lot of things that I could do for my country.

Adolf Hitler must be trembling in his boots.

Now, Mr. Godsey, if those draft people give you any trouble,

you just let us know, and Sister and I will write a letter.

To whom, Sister?

Why, this time we'll go right to the top. Eleanor Roosevelt.

- Bus is late. - Maybe it broke down.

I hope not. I've got to be at the base in four hours.

I never thought I'd be nervous about seeing my own brother.

I won't know how to act.

I feel the same way. He hasn't been home in so long.

- You've all seen him in the hospital. - JIM-BOB: It's not the same, Daddy.

Everything's different. He won't even recognize the place.

JOHN: That's why it's important to make him feel comfortable.

Should be a happy time for him. He's been through a lot.

Well, I'll be glad to have him back home and I still feel a little strange.

You'll see. When he gets off that bus, it'll be like old times again.

The bus is here. Come on.

Come on, everybody.

Come on. Come on. There he is!

- John-Boy! - JASON: Hey!

JASON: Welcome home, Brother. ERIN: John-Boy!

- Welcome home, son. - Thanks, Daddy.

- I've waited a long time for this. - Good to see you.

I want you to meet Cindy.

- Hi. - Hi.

You're lovely. You're just the way Ben described you.

Ben wanted to be here, but he couldn't get leave.

- Where's my new niece? - CINDY: She's home with Rose.

And John Curtis and Jeffrey and Serena.

Lord, it feels strange. I don't know one of them.

- They're looking forward to meeting you. - Same here.

- Well, let's get going. - Well, all right, let's go.

All right, who's riding with me?

- Cousin Rose. - John-Boy.

Oh, mercy, you're handsome.

I'm forgetting myself.

This is my granddaughter, Serena, and my grandson, Jeffrey.

- How do you do? - Just fine, honey.

- Jeffrey. - Could you show us your Purple Heart?

It's good to have young people around here again.

JOHN: Most of the time.

Come on, let's scoot in the house.

Everything's the same.

MARY ELLEN: That's the way we wanted it to be for you.

You shouldn't have gone to all this trouble.

ELIZABETH: It wasn't any trouble, it was fun,

especially since we knew you were gonna see it.

We've been waiting for this day for a long time.

My yearbook.

We brought it down from the attic when you were missing in action.

It was something to look at while we waited.

MARY ELLEN: A lot of letters came from your old friends

at Boatwright asking about you.

You could spend the rest of your furlough answering them.

Yeah. I probably will, too.

No, you won't. You're gonna be with us till we drive you crazy.

Do any of you remember a girl named Katey Anne?

If you can't remember your old girlfriends, don't expect us to.

So that name doesn't mean anything to you?

- Doesn't ring a bell. - Sounds like a mystery.

If you were still playing Jessica, Girl Spy, you'd have solved it right away.

I gave that up for boys.

I bet you have a lot of them chasing you.

What about Katey Anne? Is she chasing you?

John Curtis, do you talk yet?

Well, don't just sit there, say something. You can talk.

How about you, Virginia?

She gurgles pretty good sometimes for her grandpa.

ERIN: Those two can make quite a fuss if they want to.

Well, I hate to disappoint you, but it's way past her bedtime.

- John Curtis, too. - Come on, sweetheart.

- Good night, honey. - Mary Ellen, let me take him.

Thank you, Rose. Good night, sweetheart.

- Good night, Cindy. - Good night.

JOHN-BOY: Good night.

(KNOCKING ON DOOR)

Hey. How are you?

The little ones off into the arms of Morpheus.

Corabeth, how are you?

- John-Boy, hi. - Ike, how are you?

- You both look... You look wonderful. - Well, we're aging well.

- Speak for yourself, Mr. Godsey. - Good to see you two.

Well, forgive us for intruding on your reunion like this,

but I simply could not rest

until I saw for myself that John-Boy was well again.

So, how are you gonna pass all your free time?

A little fishing, a little writing, and a lot of taking it easy.

Well, I do hope you'll set aside some time next week

for Miss Mamie and Miss Emily's autograph party for you.

I'm looking forward to seeing them.

CORABETH: Well, perhaps we can persuade Jason to favor us with a selection.

I'll ask him.

And, John, you as father of the honoree, your presence is sine qua non.

I don't know what that means, Corabeth, but I'll be there.

IKE: Corabeth, I think it's time we'd better get home.

But we just arrived.

I haven't had time to give John-Boy any of the news.

- There'll be lots of time for that. - Thanks for stopping by.

Okay. Almost forgot, this came a couple of days ago.

I knew you were coming home, so I held it for you.

- Thanks. - Yeah. Welcome home.

- Thank you. - Goodbye.

It's marked urgent.

Bad news, son?

- It's from Nan Bennett, Stewart's sister. - Your friend from Boatwright?

He and I ran into each other in London again.

- She's coming to see me. - Any special reason?

Stewart was the co-pilot of the plane I was on. He didn't make it back.

- He was killed? - I don't know.

He's listed as missing in action.

(BUOY TOLLING)

We were heading home over Belgium when the antiaircraft fire hit us.

It just ripped through the plane like it was made out of paper.

We started bumping crazily.

I made my way up to the cockpit.

The pilot was slumped over dead and Stewart was at the control.

He said we'd be okay. He said we'd make it all right.

Only we got hit again and there was a pain in my head

and Stewart was shouting something and we were going down and down...

- Then what happened? - I don't remember.

What am I going to tell his sister?

You must have blacked out.

How'd you get out of the plane?

I don't remember.

I've tried, but there's a door shut to me and I can't open it.

I feel as if I've lost a part of myself, a very important part of me.

Elizabeth, I need the nail polish, I found the run.

You're putting nail polish on your stockings?

Yup. It stops the run.

You got leave. Why didn't you call and tell me?

Because I wanted to keep it a surprise. Hello, everyone.

- How long have you got? - A few days.

Well, looks like John Curtis and I are gonna be moving into the girls' room.

We're already packed in there like sardines.

- Hey, want me to go back to camp? - Don't you dare.

Well, maybe Serena should move in with Rose.

She snores. Don't tell that I told.

Serena, if you could put up with it just until Ben leaves,

I'll let you borrow my powder blue sweater.

Okay, if Erin lets me borrow her crystal necklace.

- Serena, that's bribery. - Is it a deal or not?

It's a deal.

(ALL LAUGHING)

- Slow down, Serena. - Sorry.

- Morning, everybody. - Morning.

- Ben! - John-Boy.

- Welcome home. - Welcome home, yourself.

- Morning, Corabeth, Ike. - Hi, John.

And how is our young warrior?

He's doing fine. He'll be back on active duty before you know it.

- Yeah, along with me. - What do you mean, along with you?

Didn't you hear? They want to draft me.

It appears Uncle Sam has tripped on his own red tape.

You mean you've heard from the Selective Service?

Yeah, and I got the notice the other day. I got it right over here.

I didn't pay much mind to it, you know,

what with having a heart attack and at my age. Excuse me, honey.

I didn't figure I was exactly prime material.

Well, it's all so absurd.

Well, I cannot delay.

I am on my way to the Baldwins to discuss John-Boy's party.

- Bye, honey. - CORABETH: Bye-bye.

- That's official, isn't it? - Well, it sure is.

They've made some kind of mistake.

- You better let them know about this. - Yeah.

Well, I'm gonna go over to the draft board as soon as I can.

But you know, I was thinking, it might be nice to be a soldier again.

You know, just, "Yes, sir. No, sir." No responsibility,

just follow orders, you know.

Ike, you'd last about 15 minutes.

(IKE CHUCKLES)

Yeah, I guess you're right.

JOHN-BOY: So much around me seems unchanged.

The way the mountain looks at sunrise,

the whippoorwills calling to their mates at night,

and yet everything is strangely altered.

There's an emptiness here

with Grandpa gone and Grandma and Mama away.

Katey Anne.

- John-Boy. - Hi, Daddy.

- Mind if I come in? - Please.

Still thinking about that name, huh?

I sure wish I could remember who she was.

It's a pretty name.

What are you doing? Working on a new novel?

I'm only trying to collect a few of my thoughts.

Everything seems so different to me.

Sure it does. Everything keeps changing.

Even after the war, there's gonna be no turning the clock back.

What was it like for you when you came back from the war?

Some of it was real nice.

Your mama was here, waiting, when I got back.

She had a little baby. That was you.

- It felt good then? - That part felt good. Yeah.

But some other things didn't feel so good.

My brother Ben had been killed in the war

and I didn't know where, somewhere in France.

Didn't even know if he had a grave or if it was marked.

And after the armistice,

it was a lot of celebrating and bands and parades,

and I just wanted to forget.

All I want to do is remember.

I feel like I'm all in bits and pieces, only the biggest piece is missing.

- The crash? - Yeah.

I wanted to come home so much,

but part of me is always back there,

falling and falling and it never stops, I never land.

Maybe you're trying too hard, son.

You know, after I'd been back from the war for a while,

I started thinking about my brother Ben.

What happened to him, where he was.

I just couldn't stop thinking about it.

It got so it took up my whole life.

And finally, I knew I just had to set it aside and go on living without knowing.

Maybe that's what you're gonna have to do.

Go on living without knowing.

I'm not ready to accept that.

Not yet.

(BUOY TOLLING)

Hey, John-Boy.

Are you okay?

Yeah. Jim-Bob, I...

It'll take me a little while to get used to being home, I guess.

- Wanna give me a hand with this? - Yeah.

IKE: Honestly, Mr. Truby, do I look like infantry material?

TRUBY: Not exactly, no.

Look, between rationing and reports,

the government's got me fighting my own war just to stay in business,

and now this.

Mr. Godsey, you've gotta look at my position.

I've only been on this job a few days.

I'm still trying to figure out what requisition forms to use

to get a nameplate on my door.

Look, somebody has to get to the bottom of this.

There does seem to have been a blunder.

Look, I don't think the army even wants me.

But they do, and they will, until we let them know that you're...

Over the hill.

Militarily speaking, yes.

Look, let me just find your file and we will get to the bottom of this.

Here.

- Godsey... - G-O...

G-O, thank you. Godsey, Godsey...

These files have not been sorted

since they were brought over from the old draft board.

Your file seems to be missing, but don't worry, we'll find it. I think.

- What do I do in the meantime? - You'll fill out these forms.

Look, I got an idea. Why don't you make a couple of phone calls,

and then you can shortcut this whole thing, huh?

The army is not particularly impressed by telephone calls.

They want everything in writing.

That'll take weeks.

I advise you to have them at the induction center

before the date scheduled for your physical.

Which doesn't leave you much time.

I am sorry.

You're sorry and I'm about to get drafted.

Anybody seen John-Boy?

He and Jim-Bob left at dawn to go fishing.

Early bird catches the fish, so to speak.

I just can't get over

how well John-Boy appears to be after all he's been through.

He seems quieter to me.

Well, maybe that's because he's more grown-up now.

Now, when you talk to him, it's like he's lost, like he's not listening.

Well, soldiers get distracted that way. It's because of their war experiences.

Maybe he's thinking of the mystery woman.

- Oh, ho, the first I've heard of that. - Her name's Katey Anne.

I think she might be a beautiful Belgian girl

who nursed him back to health after he was shot down.

Katey Anne doesn't sound like a particularly Belgium-ish sort of name.

Well, if John-Boy's thinking about anybody, it's Nan Bennett.

She's coming to see him today.

JOHN-BOY: Miss Bennett?

This is awkward, isn't it?

I thought it would be easy to drive over and talk about Stewart.

Please, have a seat.

Thank you.

You knew it wouldn't be easy.

I guess being a writer gives you a head start on being perceptive.

No, I wish it did.

May I get you some coffee or a cup of tea?

No thank you. Just a little conversation.

You look like Stewart. It's the eyes and the eyebrows.

Stewart and I were very close. I used to tag along everywhere.

He taught me how to ride a horse, how to hit a baseball,

how to play poker.

I got so used to being his shadow

that I thought I was supposed to go along with him on his first date.

It came as quite a surprise when he didn't let me.

What about your parents?

They're taking his loss pretty hard.

I didn't tell them I was coming over today.

I didn't want to encourage any false hopes.

Do you remember his ever mentioning a girl named Katey Anne?

- Why? - Well, it's just a name,

but I keep hearing it over and over in my head,

like a record stuck in a groove.

I think if she'd been part of Stewart's life, I'd have known.

Yeah, I suppose I would, too.

What happened on the plane?

If I knew that, I would've written you a long time ago.

- But you were there. - I was wounded.

- And Stewart? - I don't remember.

You must remember some of it. Tell me what you can. Please.

We were heading home to England when we were hit.

Most of the crew were injured or killed.

Stewart took the controls.

He said he was going to land the plane in the ocean.

The water was getting closer

and closer

and closer.

(BUOY TOLLING)

Go on, what happened?

I don't remember.

- There must be more. Think. - No.

- You were heading for the water and... - That's all. I don't know any more.

Nothing.

I'm sorry.

I wish I could be more help.

So do I.

There's a good chance he survived the crash.

It's not knowing that's hard.

In his letters, he never mentioned the grim side of war.

Mostly, he talked about the good times the two of you had.

Stewart and I used to drink beer together.

In London, there was this pub, the Queen's Garter.

They served a special kind of ale we'd never tried,

and they refused to serve Americans because they had such a small supply.

One night, Stewart borrowed an RAF uniform,

put on a fake mustache and became the spitting image of Ronald Colman.

You know, we went back to the Queen's Garter.

I ordered the regular ale and he ordered the special brew.

- And he got it? - On the house

because he was one of the few who had done so much for so many.

He would get away with a stunt like that.

One sip, and his mustache fell off and landed in the glass.

Serves him right.

Stewart sent me this. I thought you might like it.

We dragged a nanny away from her pram to take this. Thank you.

- I'm glad we finally met. - I'm happy you came by.

I don't seem to have that stiff upper lip that Stewart says the British go in for.

Thank you.

Nan, Stewart always talked about you as someone special. I can see why.

Goodbye.

- Hello, Jeffrey. - Hi.

Don't go.

I didn't mean to spy on you or anything,

it's just that I've never seen a writer before.

I'm only writing in my journal.

- What are you writing? - Just notes.

What's it like being in the army?

I spend most of my time writing for Stars and Stripes,

that's the army newspaper.

Has it got any funnies?

Sure, we've got the Sad Sack and cartoons by Bill Mauldin.

- Any Katzenjammer Kids? - Afraid not.

Would you like me to send you a copy?

I guess I'll just stick with the Charlottesville Progress.

It's got a lot of funnies. See you.

Mr. Godsey, what on earth is keeping you up this hour?

It's all these government forms, Corabeth, and they're putting me to sleep.

Well, it's a mystery to me why you even bother.

It's past the day you were supposed to report and nothing's happened.

Yeah, I know.

Sometimes, I think I just ought to just let them draft me.

You know, they got jobs for men like me.

- Like what? - Like undercover work.

You, a spy?

Mr. Godsey, you wouldn't fool me for a minute.

That's because you know me.

But the enemy, they would think of me as sort of a mild-mannered man.

- Well, you are. - That's why I'd be good at it.

I could look for German spies

and black marketeers and rationing violators.

- I could even report you. - Well, whatever for?

Yesterday, you gave two extra pounds of sugar to the Baldwin ladies.

Mr. Godsey, those were for chocolate é clairs for John-Boy's party.

But undercover agents only care about violations, not the reasons why.

Mr. Godsey, I do hope they draft you.

- Can I help? - No, thanks.

Are you going to paint it?

Well, it depends on whether I like it or not.

Will it be able to fly?

Probably end up hanging it on the wall with the rest of my models.

Why do you want to build an airplane if it can't fly?

Jeffrey, I'm really busy right now.

If you want somebody to talk to, go talk to Elizabeth.

She can't help me.

- Something wrong? - I'm worried about the war.

Well, we all are.

It's just that I don't know whether to join the army, like Jason,

or to go into the Air Corps, like you, or to be like Ben and go into the Seabees,

or to draw cartoons for Stars and Stripes.

They don't have anything like Katzenjammer Kids.

I wouldn't worry about it if I were you.

The war'll be over by the time you're old enough to join.

That's what you think.

In school, we're learning about this war that lasted over 100 years.

Well, that was years ago,

before they had machine guns, airplanes, submarines.

- Wars just don't last that long anymore. - Really?

The First World War was only four years long.

Who won?

I think you'd better study your history some.

I'm sure glad the war is going to be over soon.

I didn't want to get shot down.

Okay, Jeffrey, now, as soon as you finish this,

I want you to take Corabeth's duster

and go straighten out the pool room a little bit, huh?

Boy, you sure are making me earn those jawbreakers.

Jeffrey, this is the American way.

I would have more fun at that dumb book-signing party.

(BELL DINGS)

- Good afternoon. - Yes, sir, may I help you?

I'm Agent Richard Bragdon, FBI. I'm looking for Isaac A. Godsey.

That's me. Did Corabeth put you up to this?

(LAUGHING) What is this, some kind of a joke?

The FBI doesn't joke. Here are my credentials.

I'd like to ask you a few questions, Mr. Godsey.

Yes, sir. Fire away. I mean, ask away.

Did you recently receive a notice from the Selective Service?

- I did. - Did you read it?

Well, yes, but it was a mistake.

And did you fail to report last Monday for your physical examination?

Well, yes, but the reason I did

is because I had to make out all these forms and I had to do them in triplicate.

Well, that's of no concern to me, sir.

You have failed to respond to an order from your draft board.

I'm going to have to take you down to the induction center.

But it's a mistake. Do I look like fighting material, huh?

The army works in strange ways, Mr. Godsey.

Well, okay.

Jeffrey, here are the keys and you lock it up for me, huh?

And then go tell your Uncle John to come and rescue me, soon.

"As I left Tunisia to return to England, I flew over the Mediterranean.

"I looked down at that sparkling stretch of blue sea,

"and it seemed inconceivable

"that men could be fighting and dying along its shores and in its waters.

"And I thought of the countless battles that had taken place below.

"Men had been fighting there for thousands of years,

"and I wondered if the warring would ever end

"and if there would ever be peace."

John-Boy, it means so much to hear you reading from your own book.

- I most wholeheartedly agree. - Thank you.

CORABETH: We should thank you.

Your words have transported us halfway around the world.

Have you decided what your next book will be?

I'm working on a few ideas, but nothing definite yet.

Why don't you write about your experience

in that plane you were in over Belgium?

Sister, I think John-Boy might prefer

not to be reminded of that painful memory.

Oh. Yes, of course.

Well, why don't we have our refreshments now,

and then John-Boy can autograph our books?

- I'll help you. - Sounds good to me.

Jason, would you favor us with some music?

- Sure, Miss Mamie. - No war songs, please.

Any requests, anybody? John-Boy?

You decide.

That's always been a favorite of mine. Especially now that I'm a Virginian.

(SINGING) Carry me back to old Virginny

(BUOY TOLLING)

That's where the cotton

And the corn and taters grow

There's where the birds warble sweet in the springtime

That's where this old soldier's heart...

John-Boy, you all right?

I'm sorry.

I'll get the broom.

Jeffrey, what's the matter?

Ike told me to come and get you. He's been arrested by the FBI.

- Oh, dear. - Come on, we'll find him.

Oh, my, I do hope they don't put him in the stockade.

Or in front of a firing squad.

(GASPS)

Corabeth, just calm down, he's not going to jail.

It's gonna be all right. We'll get it straightened out.

Major, I'm telling you once again, I was chairman of the local draft board.

Ike Godsey is too old.

And his heart attack, don't forget to tell him about that.

Now, you already told me about the heart attack twice, Mrs. Godsey.

Corporal, if you've got an Ike Godsey out there, bring him in, with his file.

But, Major Gordon, sir...

- You heard me, Corporal, that's an order. - Yes, sir.

I appreciate your helping us straighten this out, Mr. Walton.

But since they consolidated the draft boards, things have really been snafu.

Snafu?

Is Mr. Godsey snafu, John? What does that mean?

Snafu... Well...

It's an army term, isn't it, Major? Why don't you explain it?

Yes, it is an army term. It means situation normal, all fouled up.

Yes, that's it.

Oh!

Well, perhaps it does apply to Mr. Godsey.

(KNOCKING ON DOOR)

Come in.

Here is Mr. Godsey's file, sir.

And here's Mr. Godsey.

He was in the middle of his physical.

Mr. Godsey, where are your clothes?

They took them, Corabeth. They took them all.

Well, what's that thing?

It's my personal effects.

Please sit down, Mr. Godsey, and we'll see if we can straighten this out.

I certainly hope so. Thanks for coming over, John.

It's all right, Ike, I wouldn't have missed this for the world.

- This is not funny, John. - I know it's not, Corabeth.

Godsey, Isaac Aloysius.

Aloysius? Aloysius?

You registered for the draft on April 27, 1942,

at the Walton's Mountain local board.

That's when I was chairman of the board. We registered everybody under 65.

Mr. Godsey, did you receive a notice about four months ago

telling you that you had been reclassified to 1A status?

Just about the time we consolidated the boards.

Yes, I did, but I didn't think anything of it.

I thought it was just, you know, some mistake or something.

And besides, it made me feel kind of young again.

Really, Mr. Godsey.

According to these records, you are remarkably young.

It states here that your birth date is September 1, 1924.

Huh? That makes me 20 years old.

There you go, Ike. You got what you wanted.

- When were you born, Mr. Godsey? - September 24, 1901.

That's our answer. The day and the date have been reversed.

This whole mess was caused by a clerical error.

- Then I'm free to go? - Yes, not dressed the way you are.

I'll have your things brought in.

Well, thank you very much, Major. John, what can I say?

I'm glad you're not snafu, Ike.

- Aren't you, Corabeth? - Yes, I certainly am.

Well, I know you would have looked very handsome in uniform, Mr. Godsey,

but I love you dearly just the way you are.

(KNOCKING ON DOOR)

Yeah.

- You busy? - No, come on in.

We brought you a present.

We have more than just tea parties around here, John-Boy.

Beer? In this house? Times have sure changed.

Mama isn't here and Rose is busy making supper.

- Hey, don't I get a beer? - Then we'd really be in trouble.

Let's have a toast to getting together. We don't know when that'll happen again.

- Hear, hear. - I'll drink to that.

Great.

JOHN-BOY: Hmm.

This tastes good.

Maybe it's 'cause we're drinking up here. Forbidden fruit.

Yeah, and I got the fruit.

Do you remember when we used to sneak out behind the smokehouse

and roll our own cigarettes?

You know, I could never get that paper to stick,

and also all that tobacco would end up in the middle.

And Grandpa caught us and made us smoke the whole sack full of the stuff.

- How come I don't remember any of this? - You're lucky you don't. We all got sick.

You're growing up now, Jim-Bob. You still thinking about the Air Corps?

I'll get there one way or another.

He's still making model airplanes.

JIM-BOB: Well, that's one way to learn about the Air Corps.

Hey, John-Boy, I got a model of a Flying Fortress. Do you want to see it?

Sure. I saw a lot of them over there.

ROSE: Supper in five minutes.

- We'll be right down. - We better drink up.

Wait, one more toast. To peace.

- Amen. - To peace.

To peace.

- MARY ELLEN: You need any help, Rose? - Everything's under control, thank you.

As soon as Serena and Jeffrey finish their chores, we can eat.

That's exactly what we wanted to hear, Rose.

(SCREAMS)

- Can you read us a story? - Hi, Daddy. No, read us a comic.

You two in your second childhood?

Well, ever since John-Boy came home, we've been feeling younger.

Besides, I'd rather be a little girl anyways.

Hey, you big hulks, why don't you leave him alone? You're gonna squish him.

He doesn't seem to mind much.

Yeah, it's nice to see everybody around here is still a little nutty at times.

Hey, John-Boy, here's that model I was telling you about.

- You wanna see it? - Yeah.

JIM-BOB: All I gotta do is put a name on it.

I think I'm gonna call it Scarlett O'Hara.

(BUOY TOLLING)

No.

No, Jim-Bob, her name is Katey Anne.

It goes right there.

Stewart kept saying, "Hold on to Katey Anne, she'll save us.

"Katey Anne will save us."

Stewart brought us right down on to the ocean just like he said he would.

We helped each other climb out of the plane,

and then together we clung to Katey Anne.

That's when I knew he was hurt.

(BUOY TOLLING)

STEWART: What do you think of your first bombing mission?

I think it'll be a while before I decide to go on my next one.

Oh, yeah?

I'll have you out here again in a few weeks.

Stewart?

Do you think this is it?

We're not gonna die, if that's what you mean.

Hell, a few days from now, we'll be joking about this.

You hear that buoy?

That means we're close to shore, a few miles, no more.

We're practically home free.

My head feels like it's gonna explode. How about you?

I'm fine, believe me.

No, you're trying too hard.

I don't know what else to do.

I love this world.

Same here.

Even after I conned you into going on this mission?

I won't be so easy next time.

- That buoy sounds louder. - I don't think so.

You know, you're getting to be a real party pooper, Walton.

- I just wanna go to sleep. - You can't. We've got to stay conscious.

Hey, how about a duet, my bass to your baritone?

You never know, if we're any good, I might quit this flying stuff

and get a job in the USO.

- I can't. - Come on.

(SINGING) Carry me back

- To old Virginny - To old Virginny

- There's where the cotton - There's where the cotton

- And the corn and taters grow - And the corn and taters grow

- There's where the birds warble sweet - There's where the birds warble sweet

- In the springtime - In the springtime

There's where this old soldier's heart...

This was your idea. Stewart?

Stewart!

Stewart!

Stewart!

Stewart! Stewart!

Stewart!

Lord, we thank you for all the many blessings you've given this family,

this food, this time to be together.

We ask you to watch over all those who aren't with us tonight,

both now and forever.

Amen.

- ALL: Amen. - Amen.

Well, dig in. Here you go, son. Here, you help yourself.

JOHN-BOY: I had come home to find a part of my past that was missing.

There was an ache in my heart for my friend, Stewart.

But I had finally confronted the past and accepted its cruelty.

ERIN: Serena, did you put my necklace back?

SERENA: I left it on Nana's dresser. I'll get it in the morning.

MARY ELLEN: Has anybody run across John Curtis' teddy bear?

ELIZABETH: I saw it in Cindy's room. And I found your curlers under my bed.

MARY ELLEN: Well, I don't think we'll ever get sorted out.

Even John-Boy left his slippers.

ELIZABETH: Keep them. He'll be back. MARY ELLEN: Good night, everybody.

SERENA: Good night. ERIN: Good night.

English -SDH